Military Spouses and a Desire for Flexible Work

Are you curious about the impact of flexible work on military spouses, or about their current employment situation? For many military spouses, employment can be one of the biggest struggles related to their military life experience.

As part of the 2017 FlexJobs Super Survey, 110 military spouses raised their voices to share their current situation, their desires for employment, and the many ways flexible work would support their endeavors.

Below we take a closer look at the numbers.

Military spouses, both male (16%) and female (84%) report their education level, career level, and employment status as seen below:

Although military spouses are sometimes viewed and stigmatized as homemakers with minimal education and little desire to work, the opposite seems to be true.

Education Level

Bachelor’s degree (36%)

Graduate degree (34%)

Some college (16%)

Career Level

Experienced (57%)

Entry-level (27%)

Manager (10%)

Senior-level manager (5%)

Employment Status

Unemployed and looking (34%)

Employed full-time (22%)

Employed part-time (12%)

Freelancing part-time (6%)

Unemployed, but not looking (5%)

Employed and freelancing, totaling a full-time schedule (4%)

Freelancing full-time (2%)

Employed and freelancing, totaling a part-time schedule (2%)

Freelancing occasionally to supplement income (2%)

Temping or working short-term (1%)

This begs the question, what are the real reasons military spouse unemployment rates hover around 21% while the national average is well below that? Sadly, for many, it is the enlisted partner’s schedule and work demands, frequent moves, and lack of access to decent and affordable child care that keeps spouses from gaining and maintaining employment. This is where the importance of flexible work comes in.

After reviewing the numbers above, let’s look at the reasons military spouses work, and the types of flexibility they are looking for:

Military spouses want or need to work:

Need and want to work (64%)

Want to work (19%)

Need to work (17%)

Reasons for working:

To pay for basic necessities (65%)

Save for retirement (64%)

To travel (59%)

Because they enjoy working (58%)

To pay off debt (57%)

To have a professional impact on the world (51%)

To pay for “luxury” items (51%)

Because they are passionate about career success (50%)

Other reasons include paying for health-related issues, education, child-related costs, supporting parents, and to contribute to charity.

Flexibility desired in a job:

Telecommuting 100% of the time (85%)

Flexible schedule (70%)

Part-time schedule (49%)

Alternative schedule (41%)

Telecommuting some of the time (38%)

Freelancing (31%)

And, of those looking for flexibility in their career, 72% want the flexible arrangement to be long-term.

With military spouses looking for flexible work arrangements, it should come as no surprise that 42% of respondents have left a job because of a lack of flexibility. Of those who didn’t leave, 28% haven’t considered it; 14% mulled the idea over, but decided to stay; and 17% have thought about it and are currently looking for a new job because of a lack of flexibility.

Military spouses also seem less concerned about flexible work hurting their career progression, with 62% not worried about it, 22% worried a little, and 10% worried a lot. This could be related to stats about the lack of career progression for military spouses, which shows that 63% have not experienced a work promotion since marrying their service member.

So where are the connections between military spouses and flexible work? Let’s explore:

Items most important to military spouses when evaluating job prospects:

Work-life balance (75%)

Flexible schedule (70%)

Telecommuting (67%)

Salary (66%)

Meaningful work (56%)

Work schedule (47%)

Professional challenge (40%)

Career progression (39%)

Location (39%)

Reasons for wanting a flexible job:

Work-life balance (76%)

Family (70%)

Commute stress (42%)

Cost savings (39%)

Time savings (37%)

Travel (33%)

Avoid office politics and distractions (32%)

Exercise (30%)

Willing to exchange for flexible work:

Health benefits (38%)

Nothing, as they shouldn’t have to choose benefits or flexible arrangements (30%)

Employer-matching retirement contributions (25%)

A 10% cut in pay (24%)

Some vacation time (23%)

Military spouses also state that they would be more loyal (76%) to their employers if given flexible work options, as well as be more productive (68%) by working from home. They also believe that flexible work would save them money (85%), help them be healthier (89%), lower their stress levels (89%), and either provide a huge improvement (51%) or positive impact (48%) to their quality of life.

With staggering unemployment rates, and very clear communication that flexibility is needed to help military spouses gain and keep a career, it’s time for employers to step up and offer military-friendly work environments.